BLOOMINGTON, Indiana — For projected first-round picks, pro days aren’t about discovery. They’re about confirmation. And in that sense, Fernando Mendoza — Heisman winner, national champion and presumptive No. 1 overall pick on April 23 — was exactly who we thought he was.

If anything, his workout at the John Mellencamp Pavilion was more reassuring than revealing. That’s precisely what Raiders head coach Klint Kubiak — in attendance alongside offensive coordinator Andrew Janocko — came to see.

For starters, Mendoza looked bigger as he made his way to the east end zone to begin warming up. He weighed 236 pounds at the NFL Scouting Combine and played closer to 225, but he looked put together and began fizzing passes to wide receiver Charlie Becker (who I imagine we’ll be talking a lot about during the 2026 season).

And when I say “fizzing passes,” I mean Mendoza was slinging it. It’s the kind of arm talent you don’t fully appreciate on tape — but standing 20 feet away, it’s glaring. The velocity, the ease, the quick release — it’s all real. In fact, his arm talent and trigger are closer to Cam Ward than, say, C.J. Stroud or Jayden Daniels. Throughout the session, his ball placement was consistent — on time, on target, right on the receiver’s face.

Mendoza didn’t showcase the same anticipatory throws Carson Beck flashed at Miami’s pro day, but that’s baked into Mendoza’s tape. He’s made those throws. He’ll continue to make them, even as the windows tighten on Sundays.

And for anyone still trying to manufacture a QB1 debate in this class, let’s keep it simple: there isn’t one. I know the internet has spent some time in recent weeks weighing whether Ty Simpson can make a late push.

In the simplest terms: he cannot. Not because Simpson isn’t a good player who could grow into a great quarterback at the next level, but because based on the body of work to date — and the physical tools (both size and arm strength) — it’s not particularly close. Mendoza is the much better prospect.

I talked about this with my co-host on “With the First Pick,” former Titans general manager Ran Carthon.

How Mendoza stacks up against past top QB prospects

So just how good is Mendoza?

If he were in last year’s draft, there would have been a real discussion about QB1. (And if Simpson were also in last year’s class, he would have battled Jaxson Dart for “the QB drafted after Ward and/or Mendoza at some point later in the first round, or even in Round 2.”) Half the people I’ve talked to would still have Ward as QB1, while the other half are Team Mendoza. The point: they’re two really good quarterbacks who excel in different ways, but who also would have been among the first players taken in this hypothetical draft.

If we take it a step further and compare Mendoza to the 2024 class, which saw six QBs taken in the first 12 picks, I would have had him as QB4 behind some combination of Caleb Williams, Jayden Daniels and Drake Maye. I might even make the case that Mendoza would be QB3 after Williams and Daniels, because Maye was inconsistent for much of his final year at UNC. With the benefit of hindsight, sure, Maye is a top-three pick, maybe the No. 1 overall pick, but knowing what we knew on draft night in 2024, it’s fair to say Mendoza outplayed Maye in their final college seasons.

It helps that Mendoza has played a lot of ball (Simpson has just 15 career college starts, and I wrote about the perils of first-round QBs with such limited game reps). That experience showed up immediately upon stepping foot on campus in Bloomington.

“I knew he was a dude,” cornerback D’Angelo Ponds told “With the First Pick” at the combine. “[Not just] him … throwing it, a lot of quarterbacks are going to throw that ball … but for him to have the football IQ [he does] and not take the bait … I kind of knew he was going to be a great quarterback.

“He’s a competitor,” Ponds continued. “I’ve never seen him get flustered … we picked him off on the first play of fall camp … and he came right back and was throwing right back at me.”

From the jump, Ponds paints Mendoza as the kind of quarterback defenders hate facing — disciplined, patient and impossible to rattle. That “dude” moment wasn’t a highlight throw; it was restraint, the ability to not take the bait. That speaks to Mendoza’s command and processing speed.

Pair that with what Ponds saw after adversity — no visible frustration, just an immediate response — and you get a clear picture of his leadership. Steady, unshaken and relentlessly competitive, Mendoza set the tone at Indiana by how he handled both success and failure, and that will serve him well in Las Vegas.

Below is a look at other Indiana pro day standouts we had a chance to talk with during the pre-draft process and who have a great chance to hear their names called on draft weekend:

Elijah Sarratt, WR

• Draft range: Day 2
• Draft comp: Elic Ayomanor

A productive riser who transitioned from FCS to the Big Ten, Elijah Sarratt proved he belongs on the big stage by helping Indiana to a 2026 national championship. Known by the moniker “Waffle House” because he is “always open,” Sarratt attributes his technical growth to studying elite NFL connections. “I ended up sending [Fernando Mendoza] some clips one day of Aaron Rodgers and Davante Adams … we started working on those,” Sarratt told me and Carthon at the combine while discussing his back-shoulder chemistry with his QB.

What to expect at the next level: Sarratt is a physical “big slot” or possession receiver who wins with strength at the line of scrimmage and soft hands. He is exceptionally tough across the middle and possesses great contact balance to absorb hits and create yards after the catch. While he lacks elite burner speed and can be stiff at the top of his breaks, he is an asset in the red zone and a surprisingly tenacious blocker.

CB D’Angelo Ponds

• Draft range: Day 2
• Draft comp: Devon Witherspoon

D’Angelo Ponds arrived at Indiana with a chip on his shoulder, having been overlooked due to his size. “Nobody expected me to be here,” Ponds said regarding his journey to the combine. Despite being 5-foot-9, he plays with a “dog” mentality that earned him Freshman All-America honors. He is comfortable playing both outside and in the nickel, telling teams, “Wherever your team needs me is where I’m going to play … and I can succeed at both.”

What to expect at the next level: Ponds is a high-IQ cornerback with exceptional recovery speed and a refusal to be intimidated by larger receivers. He is a willing tackler who consistently defeats blocks and limits YAC. He understands route concepts, which consistently puts him in position to make plays on the ball. He may be undersized, but he doesn’t know it — or play like it.

C Pat Coogan

• Draft range: Day 2/3
• Draft comp: Joe Thuney

Pat Coogan is one of one. There’s a clear through-line when Indiana’s skill players and QB talk about center Pat Coogan: trust. Not just in the obvious, physical sense, but in the way everything runs cleaner because he’s in the middle of it. For Mendoza — who emphasized that “accuracy is the number one thing you need” — that’s much easier to execute from a clean pocket.

Coogan provides what teammates consistently describe as a steady presence and communicator up front. You can feel that confidence trickle down into how Indiana operated offensively — timing, rhythm and execution all start with the player who handles the ball to begin every play.

Skill-position players point to his consistency and physicality. The run-game identity — downhill, efficient and controlled — doesn’t happen without a center who can generate movement and stay attached. There’s also an appreciation for the little things: Coogan getting out in space, locating second-level defenders and finishing blocks that don’t show up in the box score but spring explosives. And perhaps most importantly, there’s the leadership.

“Man, I love Pat Coogan,” Black told me at the Senior Bowl in January. “He’s a warrior — he’s relentless. … And his pregame speeches and halftime speeches — those were things we looked forward to in those big-time games. It’s one of those things where you feel it. You feel it in your chest. You just feel it in your whole body, like it’s time to go.”

Teammate after teammate echoed some version of that same story when talking about Coogan, who may not be the best athlete in this class, but whose ability to bring a team together and lead in tough moments transcends athletic ability.

What to expect at the next level: Coogan is a historic producer who became the first offensive lineman in 82 years to win Rose Bowl MVP honors. He’s a powerful, technically sound center with scheme versatility and high-level play strength. In pass protection, he plays with a strong anchor, low pad level and heavy hands, consistently neutralizing interior rushers. He shows the ability to re-anchor against bull-rushing defensive tackles.

In the run game, he’s a tone-setter. Coogan generates consistent movement at the snap, sustains blocks and thrives on combo blocks. What separates him is his mobility, as he’s comfortable pulling from center, locating targets in space and finishing at the second level. He’ll fit both zone and gap schemes at the next level.

RB Kaelon Black

• Draft range: Day 3
• Draft comp: Hassan Haskins

A veteran presence in the backfield, Kaelon Black transitioned from a “do-it-all” threat at JMU to a 1,000-yard rusher for the Hoosiers. Black models his game after Josh Jacobs, emphasizing a balance of power and agility. “Josh can run through people, but also whenever he needs to, he can make a move … those are aspects I have,” Black told me at the Senior Bowl. He is a tone-setter who actively seeks contact rather than heading for the sidelines, viewing every carry as an opportunity to “send a message” to the defense.

What to expect at the next level: Black is a patient, one-cut-and-go runner who explodes through holes. He runs with low pads and looks to punish defenders at the second level. He is a reliable pass catcher who didn’t drop a pass in 2025, though he could be more elusive in the open field. His age (24) and high mileage may impact his ceiling, but good luck finding someone tougher, which makes him an immediate special teams contributor.

TE/H-back/FB Riley Nowakowski

• Draft range: Mid-to-late Day 3
• Draft comp: Brayden Willis

Riley Nowakowski is the quintessential glue guy, a five-time Academic All-Big Ten selection who balanced a rigorous industrial engineering degree with a championship run. A versatile former walk-on, Nowakowski takes pride in executing the unselfish tasks. Regarding his role, he told us at the combine that NFL teams see him as “a plug-and-play kind of guy” who can transition between fullback, tight end and H-back. His commitment is absolute; he was finishing school assignments just hours before arriving at the combine.

What to expect at the next level: Nowakowski is a versatile, high-IQ player who serves as an “inline security blanket.” He runs disciplined routes, possesses reliable hands and displays flashes of straight-line speed on inside screens. He is an asset in move-blocking schemes and isn’t afraid to “muck somebody” on a down block to spring a runner. He needs to continue refining his size-to-power ratio for consistent inline blocking at the next level.